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Comment by jasonhansel | Hacker News Reader

I get the sense that they are trying very carefully not to sound like climate change denialists, so that they won't get conflated with people much further from the scientific consensus. If they just said "the IPCC models are BS," they would likely be dismissed out of hand, at least in the scientific community.

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Pielke Jr is a climate-action "denialist" from a long way back, no? (claims to accept the science but then concludes there's nothing we can do about it for the foreseeable future other than adapt. This article seems to be saying "well ok some of the changes we've made are making a difference to emissions, but now there's no real need to make any more...").

You’ve substituted “climate change denialist” for “climate action denialist”.

Why?

Only because I don't believe he's ever denied climate change was happening or that if it is it's not our fault, which are the usual first two phases of denialism.

I don’t follow. You’re responding to a point about the author not being a climate change denialist by saying that he doesn’t think action against climate change is justified.

What point are you actually trying to make? It seems like you’re trying to equate one with the other, especially given your novel use of the word “denialism”. I don’t want to put words in your mouth, but I’m still unclear on what exactly you are implying.

I just got the impression the OP wasn't aware of Pielke Jr's background. Actually he's probably better described as a contrarian than a denialist, though he's been called out by no less than Michael Mann as belonging to the latter camp.

Fair. Thanks for clarifying.

C'mon now, credit where credit is due:

    Roger A. Pielke Jr. is an American political scientist and professor, and was the director of the Sports Governance Center within the Department of Athletics at the Center for Science and Technology Policy Research at the University of Colorado Boulder.

But yes, a long time denialist amd one frequently steadfastly wrong in the face of evidence independantly confirmed by multiple third parties of standing.

He got that from his father who was also an AGW denialist (a climate change believer, but a denier that humans play any meaningful role), albeit one with more relevant credentuals:

    Roger A. Pielke Sr. is an American meteorologist with interests in climate variability and climate change, environmental vulnerability, numerical modeling, atmospheric dynamics, land/ocean – atmosphere interactions, and large eddy/turbulent boundary layer modeling.

FWiW it is universally acknowledged that Jnr. does have considerable expertise and knowledge in the field of water polo.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_A._Pielke_Jr.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roger_A._Pielke

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